Prices Plunge on Long Supply

10:45 AM MDT | July 27, 2007 | Gregory Dl Morris

High inventories and slumping demand have led to a sharp drop in global methanol prices. Initial settlements in the European second-quarter contract price were agreed to last week at €250/m.t., fob, a decrease of €170/m.t., or 40% from first-quarter levels. U.S. Gulf Coast April posted contract prices, which are usually released by the middle of the previous month, had not been released at CW press time, but market watchers were expecting a decrease of 20 cts-30 cts/gal from March levels of about 152 cts/gal, fob. “Supplier inventories are very...